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Wet spring conditions threatening your nitrogen investment?

It’s that time of year again. Farmers are turning to their fields and wondering what impact this year’s wet spring conditions will have on their applied N, or if they applied in the fall, how much N is leftover.

Growers looking to apply N in the spring need to be conscious of the affect wet soil conditions can have on their N. For growers who applied N in the fall, they may have to apply an N top-up, depending on weather conditions and what kind of N fertilizer was used.

Even with optimum application timing, wet spring soil conditions, which many growers are currently experiencing, create the potential for N loss. Spring rainfall is likely to cause N to leach because the soil is generally already saturated, and saturated soils are especially prone to losses by denitrification.

When growers are considering what type of N to apply, finding an N product that lasts through wet spring conditions is a deciding factor. University research has shown that under certain environmental conditions, growers can lose up to 60% of their nitrogen – the three main loss-mechanisms being; leaching, denitrification and volatilization.

The unique polymer coating of ESN protects the urea granule from losses, resulting in more pounds of N left in the soil for the crop to utilize as it grows. The release of the urea solution is controlled by soil temperature and unaffected by excess soil moisture.   The science of ESN protects it against loss from leaching, denitrification and volatilization, meaning that when ESN is applied in wet spring conditions, the grower has added security and peace-of-mind knowing the N is protected. Growers applying their ESN in the spring also benefit from the wider application window ESN provides.

Whether applying in the fall, the spring, or both, ESN protects N from wet conditions. ESN protects against N losses from leaching and denitrification that are common in wet springs. Other enhanced efficiency N technologies, including urease inhibitors that are physically applied to urea right before planting, won’t provide the same protection against N loss under these wet conditions that ESN will.  Research has consistently shown ESN to be the superior choice when excess moisture threatens your nitrogen investment.

 

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